Love Object (2003) - Film Review

I just watched this film again a couple days ago. I bought the DVD when it came out back in 2004, and I thought it was a very well done horror/thriller. What made me watch it again recently is because I just saw the movie LARS AND THE REAL GIRL. Both films have similar set-ups - a lonely introverted man buys a life-like sex doll for companionship. The introverts in both films are also attracted to a female co-worker. But this is where the similarity ends. LARS AND THE REAL GIRL is a decent, touching and lighthearted comedy/drama (and as such, it's not really my type of film). LOVE OBJECT on the other hand travels a much darker and more twisted path. The said introvert Kenneth (played by Desmond Harrington), becomes infatuated with female co-worker Lisa (played by Melissa Sagemiller). He orders a life-like sex doll from a website that lets you customize the doll. He of course endows it with all of Lisa's physical attributes. He also finds out personal information about Lisa (like what kind of music she likes, etc). When he finds out that she likes waltz, he goes so far as to buy a bondage harness from a sex shop so he can dance with the doll!

If this sounds pretty creepy and disturbing don't worry - it gets even more twisted from here. I'm not going into the plot any further, because I don't like giving away too much. Those looking for gore won't find much here, and the sleaze-factor is held in check by the R-rating; but it's still an effective horror/thriller with some decent performances by all the actors involved. Speaking of the actors, Desmond Harrington will be familiar to horror fans as the male lead in the hillbilly splatter-fest WRONG TURN. There are also some great supporting roles, like Udo Kier as Kenneth's nosy apartment manager; and Rip Torn as Kenneth's boss. So if you've seen LARS AND THE REAL GIRL but thought that it could really benefit from some kink, sleaze, creepiness and dark humor then LOVE OBJECT is the movie for you.

Love Object (2003) - Trailer

Love Object (2003) Rating:

Catacombs (2007) - Film Review

It could have been (and should have been) so much better. Set among the underground catacombs of France, it should have at least been able to create a creepy claustrophobic atmosphere (like THE DESCENT), but it fails to generate any suspense or scares. And the twist ending just came off as ridiculous to me. In fact most of these types of horror films with the tacked on twist endings are just becoming too cliched now. Oh yeah, this was made by the producers of the SAW films. Blah! That's really all I have to say about this one. Just skip it. It's not even worth an in-depth review. For much more effective excursions into claustrophobic creepiness, check out the afforementioned THE DESCENT and Christopher Smith's 2004 film CREEP, set in the tunnels of a London subway station.

Catacombs (2007) - Trailer
Just watch the trailer, then you don't need to waste your time on the movie

Catacombs (2007) Rating:

"A Wasted Opportunity"

À l'intérieur [aka Inside] (2007) - Film Review

Before I had heard anything about this French horror/thriller, I actually saw it sitting on the shelf of my local DVD outlet. I picked it up read the back and it seemed interesting; but it was released on the Dimension Extreme label here in the US, and their titles are pretty much hit or miss. I decided to wait. After having it recommended to me many times by various friends, I finally picked it up. I shouldn't have waited. Believe the hype! This movie delivers big time.

If you're into splatter and gore (especially the realistic variety), then do not hesitate to get this movie. But it offers more than that. The story was very involving, the cinematography as well as the soundtrack was excellent, there was tension and suspense in some scenes, the actors performances ranged from adequate to excellent, and the ending didn't suck. The twist ending is nothing new to the horror/thriller genre, but ever since SAW was released outlandish twist endings have become de rigueur. And speaking of twist endings another French gore movie comes to mind - HIGH TENSION. I loved HIGH TENSION and I thought the ending was interesting, but it came so far out of leftfield that it became implausible and left lots of plot holes in the story. I'm thankful to say that INSIDE manages to avoid the outlandish twist ending cliché for the most part. A very astute viewer might be able to figure out where the ending is going, but I didn't see it coming; and when it did come it was believable enough. Béatrice Dalle was fantastic and very menacing in her role as the antagonist.

For another incredible performance by her, you would do well to seek out the French indie drama/shocker, TROUBLE EVERY DAY (2001). In closing, INSIDE is a very rewarding experience for jaded gorehounds (like myself) and for adventurous arthouse lovers (with strong stomachs).

À l'intérieur (2007) - Trailer

À l'intérieur [aka Inside] (2007) Rating:

Antaeus - Sono l'Antechristo (Custom Video by Hexenkult)

The music track is Sono l'Antechristo by French black metal band Antaeus , from their 2006 "Blood Libels" album. It's a cover of a song originally recorded by Diamanda Galas in 1986. This track is not listed on the packaging of the CD, but it starts at about 9 minutes into the last track. The video is still frames that I edited together featuring witches as the theme, mostly medieval woodcuts and some still shots from the 1922 film Haxan.

Antaeus - "Blood Libels" (2006)

MmK, lead vocalist of Antaeus

Untraceable (2008) - Film Review

This movie didn't really do much for me. It's a police procedurial suspense/thriller which tries to appeal to the SAW/HOSTEL crowd with a few somewhat gruesome torture/death scenes.

Someone is abducting people and broadcasting there torture and death live over the internet by use of a webcam. The cast are capable, but there's no real stand-out performances. I guess it may be somewhat of a diversion for suspense/thriller fans, but I found it too tedious and derivative of the films it borrows from. Here's the ingredients for the film:
1 part SILENCE OF THE LAMBS
1 part SEVEN
1 part SAW
1 part HOSTEL
By the way, the whole premise for this movie was done before by Dario Argento in his 2004 giallo THE CARD PLAYER. I'm probably biased towars Argento, but I enjoyed his film much more.

Untraceable (2008) Rating: